Trump Organization Is Reportedly Suing Marc Fisher for Allegedly Skipping Out on $1.5 Million in Rent Payments

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Former President Donald Trump’s company is reportedly taking Marc Fisher Inc. to court.

According to Bloomberg, which obtained a copy of the lawsuit, the Trump Organization Inc. filed a complaint against the shoemaker on Wednesday in Manhattan Supreme Court. It claimed that Marc Fisher skipped rent payments and now owes $1.47 million in rent over a 2015 lease at the Trump Tower in New York City.

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Marc Fisher’s showroom occupied the 21st floor and part of the 22nd floor at the mixed-use skyscraper, which is located in Midtown Manhattan and serves as the headquarters for the Trump Organization. Bloomberg reported that the monthly rent of the space was $144,936, with a security deposit of nearly $49,000.

Marc Fisher previously served as the footwear licensing partner of Ivanka Trump, daughter of the former United States president and senior advisor to his administration, until she shut down her namesake line nearly three years ago. In its story, Bloomberg noted that Marc Fisher was the third-largest tenant in Trump Tower after Gucci America Inc. and the Trump Organization as of July 2019.

FN has reached out to the Trump Organization for comment. Marc Fisher declined to comment on pending litigation as part of company policy.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, hundreds of thousands of stores, offices and other businesses were forced to temporarily shutter their doors for weeks. Subsequently, many retail tenants asked commercial real estate owners to meet at the bargaining table to renegotiate rents and leases. While some retailers sought lease concessions like deferrals or abatements, others opted to skip rent payments entirely. In response, some commercial landlords have pursued litigation against tenants — including Gap Inc. and Ross Stores Inc., to name a couple — citing, in many cases, a need to meet their own mortgage terms.

According to experts, many commercial leases contain a force majeure clause, which essentially frees both parties from certain obligations caused by circumstances beyond their control, including wars, strikes and, in some cases, pandemics and other similar unforeseen events.

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